Packaging elements of the kind referred to are used to surround and support free side regions or end regions of mainly box-shaped articles, and in the finished package they are embraced by an external shipping or presentation packaging element, e.g. in the form of a pre-fabricated case, box or envelope. Such a packaging element is known from WO 94/06704.
If the packaging elements are manufactured of a material such as expandable polystyrene, it is possible to finalize the elements almost without a draught angle, thus achieving practically full contact with the-article to one side and with the external packaging to the other side.
Within the conventional pulp-moulding method being used especially for manufacturing large numbers of packaging elements, it is required that a draught angle is maintained, at least during the moulding process so that the walls are clearing. A typical value of this angle lies in an order of magnitude of 8.degree.. This means that a packaging element of the kind set forth, manufactured by moulding a pulp material, will not come into full abutment, especially against the external, relatively thin shipping or presentation packaging.